REDHAWK CHAT: Antonio Ballard

 Antonio Ballard

Junior guard/forward Antonio Ballard from the men's basketball team stopped by on Thursday for this week's chat.

The following is a transcript from the chat with Antonio.

MURedHawks.com: The team just finished up with practice about 20 minutes ago and Antonio just arrived. We will begin the chat in a few minutes.

Scott (Columbus): You have a lot of games coming up of the next week. How hard is it to prepare for games with just a one-day turn-around?

Antonio Ballard: This is something I haven't really thought about because the coaches are taking every game one game at a time. I don't know if it's necessarily hard because of the information the coaches provide to us in the scouting reports and video edits. I think it's more of a busy thing. When it comes down to it, I think we just need to go out there and play. It's more about time management.

A fan...Jeffersonville (In): Hi Antonio. At 6-4...How do you get so many rebounds? You're kind of like Charles Barkley out there!

Antonio Ballard: First, I'd like to give a shout out to Jeffersonville and thanks for the support back home! To answer your question, it shows how fundamental basketball is with the importance of position and blocking out and also checking on your man and being aware and cautious instead of just running to the boards. You don't have to be tallest or longest person to get rebounds. I feel like I'm a shifty and crafty guard, making it hard for the defense to block. I'm determined to get as many rebounds as I can because that means more possessions for my team and better chance of winning games by providing more scoring opportunities. I'm told that I can jump a little bit (haha) so that helps.

Sam (Cincinnati): Not that you probably have a whole lot of it, but what do you like to do in your off time?

Antonio Ballard: In my down time I like to go out with my fraternity brothers and friends. Like any other person, I enjoy just going out and hanging out with friends, going out to eat and watching other sporting events on TV. Sometimes I like to come to the gym and shoot and work out on my own to clear my head a little. Other than that ... sleep!

Tom (Cincinnati): Since you're coming from practice, what's the biggest thing Coach Coles emphasized today?

Antonio Ballard: The biggest thing he emphasized today is getting better and improving. Taking the positives and building off of those. Since Bowling Green is our next game, he emphasized game strategies for the weekend ... you'll have to come and see what those are at 3 p.m. on Saturday at Millett Hall!

Coach: Who is the best looking red headed coach that you ever had? Would you rather continue your education or seal blacktop?

Antonio Ballard: Umm ... I don't know considering I only had ONE red-headed coach! I don't know if he's really good-looking though ... haha! (This is from my high school coach, Ryan Davis. I sealed blacktops with him during the summer when I was in high school.) I think I'll continue my education although sealing the blacktop was an education in and of itself.

Ryan (Chesapeake): What are you majoring in and what are you going to do when you graduate?

Antonio Ballard: I'm actually a double major in kinesiology and family world studies. I hope to continue to be able to play basketball after graduation. When my basketball career is done, I'm open to looking into many different fields.

MURedHawks.com: We have time for one more question before Antonio has to head to class.

Heidi (Hamilton): What is something most people don't know about Antonio Ballard?

Antonio Ballard: I broke my left elbow when I was eight. I have a pretty bad scar on my elbow to this day and people usually ask about it. I did it when I was riding a bike, which I got for my birthday. I was riding around with my cousin playing follow the leader and my pedals got caught in his spokes ... and you can guess what happened from there.

MURedHawks.com: Thanks to Antonio for taking time to stop by RedHawk Chat today and good luck to him and the team this weekend when they host Bowling Green on Saturday, Jan. 23 at 3 p.m. Be sure to stop by next week when a member from the women's basketball program will be on RedHawk Chat.

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